Chapter 323

There was a brief commotion thanks to Luna’s nuclear bomb-level mouth, but somehow we managed to get through it.

First off, Rize was quite busy, so we had no choice but to take that into consideration. She had been away from her seat for too long.

Living at the Academy was quite a stretch from the start anyway. I added that Byzantium wasn’t just a peaceful place.

“Sivar, brother.”

“Yeah.”

“I know you have a lot to say to me. But it doesn’t seem like now is the right time.”

“So when is?”

It seems Rize had caught on to some things. Just by her saying that, it was half-certain.

If that’s the case, when can I lay all the truths bare? When I asked with that nuance, Rize gave a wry smile.

“I can say a lot. However, it’s highly likely that we’ll just be going in circles without perfection.”

“Uh-huh.”

“There have been many times when that human tried to say something but stopped mid-sentence.”

“Oh.”

Now that I think about it, that’s true. The hero often hesitated to speak of past events.

Moreover, he had read messages that had only appeared in my view. He probably caught on to that loosely.

In seeing this, it was half-assured that there were some restrictions. Restrictions so strong that even the purple hero couldn’t refuse them.

‘How serious could this matter be?’

I grew more curious. Chaos, despite favoring its followers, had very strict standards.

You can tell just by the fact that a pleasure killer would never incorporate their followers. It’s a deity with clear lines.

“However… there’s one thing I can tell you.”

“What is it?”

“From now on, the Gaia Order will be keeping an eye on Mr. Sivar. With impure intentions.”

“…..”

I’m fully aware of that. Didn’t a priest from the Order visit me directly before?

Back then, Rize managed to cover it up appropriately, or else things might have gotten complicated without her.

Moreover, the Gaia Order is among the strongest factions. It makes sense given its connection to life.

“Therefore, it would be best to avoid them as much as possible. Oh, and Erica has been trained, so you don’t have to worry about her.”

“…Training?”

When I asked in puzzlement, Rize simply smiled. It seemed unnecessary to inquire into the meaning behind that smile.

At the very least, I could tell that Erica was my ally.

“Is there anything you want to ask me?”

“Um… no. As long as I’m careful of the Gaia Order, right?”

“Not just the Gaia Order, but also the temptations of demons.”

“Should I just stay in the forest?”

There are too many things to be cautious about. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to hide in the Chaos Forest.

But that’s wishful thinking, as the Chaos Forest compass has already been invented. Hiding wouldn’t mean anything.

It’s just too complicated. I thought it would be simple to advance the story, but it’s giving me a headache.

“I understand it’s a tough situation. But for now, we have no choice but to endure.”

“You’ll help, right?”

“I’ll do my best to help as far as my reach allows.”

At least it was reassuring to have Rize on my team. The only being capable of facing the purple one.

Of course, this is only regarding demons, but in the immediate adversarial sense, the purple one is the only demon present.

As long as the Eastern monsters don’t oppose me, I wouldn’t have to worry about anything else.

“Oh, by the way, Sivar.”

“Yeah?”

“If you want to return your body to its original state, living deep in the Chaos Forest for about 2-3 days should do the trick.”

“…?”

Rize told me that before she left. By the way, even now, hair was starting to grow back on my body.

It had barely been a few hours since I had shaved, yet it was already regrowing. Is this due to regeneration?

Anyway, given the situation, I couldn’t help but be puzzled by Rize’s suggestion.

“Do you know my body?”

“Yes. I pride myself on understanding it better than anyone else…”

Rize started to say something but stopped short. And by the way, no messages were printed separately.

She scanned my body up and down with a subtle expression before clearing her throat. Meanwhile, a slight blush appeared.

“…Luna makes me think strange things. Anyway, I can confirm that Mr. Sivar’s body is very special. Its ability to adapt to the environment is extremely fast.”

I think I understand what that means. I felt it even when I was in Frozen.

Initially, I nearly froze to death, but after munching on a few monsters, my fur started to grow back.

Thus, if I catch monsters deep in the Chaos Forest, there’s a high probability I’ll return to my former self.

Though it was merely theoretical, Rize explained it to me clearly.

“You know the reason, right?”

“Yeah. While I can’t go into details, I can say it has a close relation to your birth.”

“Is it the purple one?”

“Huh?”

Rize widened her eyes in surprise when I spoke candidly.

She had already revealed part of the birth-related info thanks to False. The fact that this body—no, that I am someone’s ‘reincarnation.’

It’s a body that has undergone both reincarnation and regression. I remembered I had once likened myself to kimchi pizza sweet and sour pork.

“Did you know?”

“False told me. That girl’s reincarnation.”

“Hmm… I see. Thankfully, that bald eagle didn’t inform everything.”

As for the birth itself, it seemed it didn’t matter much, and Rize nodded. There was no sign of displeasure.

But calling False a bald eagle was hilarious. I almost burst out laughing.

There probably wasn’t anyone else who could call such a being a bald head besides Rize.

“Anyway, Mr. Sivar, you probably have a body specialized for ‘evolution.’ You’ll easily adapt to any environment.”

“Evolution?”

“Yes. And you won’t even need to eat for your body to slowly adapt. If you went to Tartar, your skin color would change within three days.”

That’s quite fascinating. I looked at my body from different angles.

“Oh, and by the way, the fact that your skin color is unusually pale is just genetic. It will change temporarily due to adaptation, but it will return soon enough.”

“… …”

Thank you for the explanation. That clarified one of my questions.

After that, Rize and I chatted about this and that until we parted ways.

I stared blankly at her retreating figure. She really is a woman full of secrets.

I wondered when she would finally reveal all of her secrets. And why had restrictions been placed on her.

I had a mountain of curiosity, but it was probably best to solve them one by one. There’s a saying that things get harder the more rushed you are.

‘I still have plenty of time.’

Focusing on everything might lead to nothing being resolved. I thought that as I turned around.

Aside from Rize having left, there were still people left inside. They must have been dividing their tasks.

In truth, there wasn’t much in terms of tasks. As long as I led a proper life at the Academy, that was all.

The only person I should pay attention to is Kara. Tartar is the place where crises will follow the Eastern Empire.

‘Shouldn’t they occur simultaneously?’

That was my understanding of the original history. But now the situation is a bit different.

While there are plenty of rumors in the East, no rebellions have broken out. Tartar, on the other hand, was different.

At some point, it would break out as a ‘surprise event.’ I have no idea when that will happen.

‘Maybe during vacation.’

The best timing would be the hands-on experiential learning. Because we would be heading to Tartar under the pretext of survival class.

The problem is I have no idea when that will be. In the end, I’ll have to rely on people rather than the flow of history.

‘Fortunately, I’m friends with all the main characters.’

I thought that as I stepped inside. As I entered, a serene atmosphere welcomed me.

Upon inspecting inside out of curiosity, I found no one there. Instead, there was noise coming from the backyard.

The sound of weapons clashing together. A familiar noise, if anything.

‘Are they having a duel?’

It’s highly likely. With Rod rejuvenated, assessing the strength would be essential.

I didn’t need to go, so I quietly sat down and waited. On the table were leftover snacks.

There wasn’t much left, so I figured it would be okay to munch on them. It was just the right time as I was bored.

‘After the duel, I want to chat with Luna a bit.’

Even if she has a nuclear bomb-level mouth, fate binds us together whether we like it or not.

At the very least, I plan to share as much as I can with her. Including my secrets that I’ve been keeping under wraps.

Should I ask if I don’t have to pretend to be a wild man? To put it simply, it wouldn’t matter.

At least, I was pretty sure Luna wouldn’t care much. That’s something I can be confident about.

“Ugh… This is really tough.”

“You’re definitely stronger than before, right?”

“With all of us teaming up and yet this is how it goes, that’s for sure.”

As time passed, the duel ended. While everyone was exhausted, Rod, as expected, looked perfectly fine.

From what I heard, he was definitely stronger than before he rejuvenated. If this fact gets out, Rod’s status will rise even further.

Soon, vacation would end, and new students would join. Before that, he plans to inform the professors of his condition.

“Luna.”

“Yeah?”

“I need to talk to you for a moment.”

“Okay.”

While everyone rested, I called Luna for a moment. Surprisingly, she didn’t look tired at all.

After we got to the back lot, I scanned the surroundings. No one should be listening to our conversation.

I wasn’t worried about Rod eavesdropping; he had just stepped outside to inform the professors.

“I have something to tell you. It’s about me.”

“About you?”

“Yeah. Actually…”

I explained everything in a way she could fully understand. First and foremost, about the future that has disappeared.

I grew up in an ordinary household, but for some reason, I’m now like this.

I revealed that it was the time that used to be my future, and that someone had forcibly turned the time back.

Initially, I pondered whether it was alright to say all this. However, after much deliberation, I came to my decision.

From now on, Luna will be right by my side to tackle countless stories, so I needed to give her trust.

“Really? Is that really all true?”

“Yep.”

Naturally, Luna stared at me with wide eyes in surprise. She appeared rather skeptical.

I expected exactly this from her. She then looked me up and down, tilting her head.

“I had no idea. Is that really all true?”

“Yep.”

“I thought you were a real wild man?”

“… …”

Is that high-level sarcasm? I narrowed my eyes as I stared at Luna.

Did she read my thoughts or something? Luna let out a laugh, clearly more amused herself.

“Sivar, put your hand on your heart and think about it. Consider everything you’ve done so far.”

“Um…?”

Listening to Luna’s words made me reflect deeply. First off, the beginning itself was anything but ordinary.

Starting from climbing the monument with bare hands, followed by all the outlandish exploits.

Could anyone consider this normal? No matter how many times I thought about it, I kept arriving at ‘no.’

“I don’t know.”

Forcing myself to pretend ignorance wasn’t hard. The reason was simple.

I didn’t want to admit it. After all, I did those things solely for gain.

However, it seemed it didn’t look that way in Luna’s eyes. She stared at me with a cold gaze.

“Sivar, choose one.”

“Okay.”

“Live as a lunatic or live as a wild man.”

“… …”

Now that’s a real ultimatum.

[Faith is increasing!]

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